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The shatranj was the board game of the antique Persian empire. The Arabs learned it from Persians, changed its name to xatrench and brought it into Europe during the invasion of the Moors via Gibaltar strait to Spain. The game which the Moors practiced in Spain became 'aljatrench' and subsequently was latinized, since it appeared a mention of this game in a book titled 'Iego del Acedrex et otros ...', published during the reign of King Alfonso X El Sabio (the Wise King), circa 1250, in Seville, Spain. This is the origin of the spanish word for chess: 'ajedrez'. Also the spanish words 'alfil', 'jaque', 'jaquemate', roque', come from the Persian origin of the game. 'Alfil' means 'seated on a fil', elephant in Farsi, which was a division of the Hindi Army. 'Jaque' is a reference to the Shah (the Persian king), 'jaquemate' means 'the sha has no way out, i.e., is caught, 'roque' (rook) comes from 'rukh', a mobile wagon with its upper form shaped like a little tower as an element of assault. These words prove that the ancestor of modern game of chess was Shatranj (a game practiced presently by the Iranians).